A solid 1-1 day last night and I knew I should have put a few units on Boston; that was an ideal spot! But 2 days in and I’m 3-1 and I can’t be unhappy about it. Onto Hump Day!

Celtics -2 (-110), 1.5 units: Can Boston win two in a row and finally gain a little positive momentum here? I think so. The Celtics are 8-3 ATS at home and Atlanta, while the more rested and desperate team, is still nursing a ton of injuries. I think Boston will still play with determined desperation, too. Last night’s win against Denver was what they needed but it was expected; the Nuggets had a ton of players resting and they were coming off a huge win on Sunday. This contest will test the Celtics a little, but I doubt they’ll let their guard down just because they won a single game. They’re a considerably better team on both sides of the ball and they’re solid at home– bet on Boston.

76ers -10.5 (-110), 1.5 units: This is another bad situation for the Rockets and it doesn’t get much better for Philadelphia. Eric Gordon and Victor Oladipo are doubtful tonight; PJ Tucker is questionable. Meanwhile Joel Embiid looks like he’ll be suiting up for Philly. Coming off 3 straight losses to hot teams (Phoenix, Portland, and Utah), Philadelphia gets a great matchup tonight against the fledgling Rockets, who have now lost 6 straight and don’t seem to have an answer. I really like the Rockets and kept playing on them expecting some positive regression; it just never happened. Their recent loss against Washington was about as deflating as it gets. Philly is 9-4 ATS at the Wells Fargo Center, which is more bad news for Houston. Their offense is also one of the most efficient in the NBA. With so many scorers and defenders injured for Houston, Philly should completely out-pace their opponent tonight. The only side to look at here is Philly.

Timberwolves +5 (-110), 1 unit: The Timberwolves remind me a lot of the Bulls. They like to play with pace, they’re significantly more gifted on the offensive side of the ball, and they have big men who can run the court and get easy baskets. Chicago took Indiana to OT two nights ago and ended up winning by 8 points. While I’m not sure if the Timberwolves will win tonight, they should make this a game. The Pacers are one of the most solid units in the NBA, with slightly above average defense and efficient offense. They don’t exactly light up the scoreboard, though. Teams like Minnesota can be a problem for that reason. Karl-Anthony Towns is still finding his mojo but he’s only going to get better as the season progresses. Minnesota is in the middle of a home stretch and while they’re still without D’Angelo Russel, they’re still much healthier than Indiana. The Pacers continue to play without TJ Warren, Caris LeVert, Cassius Winston and two other bench warmers, which affects how deep their roster is. Minnesota is fresh off a loss last night to a Lakers team looking for revenge where they were mostly competitive, but they’ll be much less overwhelmed tonight. I’ll take the T-Wolves to cover.

Blazers/Pelicans over 236.5 (-105), 2.5 units: Probably my squarest pick tonight but who cares– this number is still far too low. The Blazers offense was electric once again last night and despite a little dip in output midway through the 4th quarter, Damian Lillard and company instantly turned on the jets and finished with an 11 point win. That was a 16 point turnaround in 4 minutes to close out the game. Meanwhile, Zion and the Pelicans have looked abysmal on offense but that won’t matter if Zion is playing the kind of basketball he has lately. The 2nd year star has been dominant at the rim, virtually unstoppable, and he can turn the tide of a game quick. I think this could be one of the better games to watch all year. I expect a back and forth battle of who can score more and while that makes it tough to choose a side, I absolutely love the over.

Heat win (-105), 1.5 units: Even though the Heat are smack dab in the middle of a SEVEN game road tour, I like this spot. Miami has lost two straight but they lost against elite opponents: the Clippers and red-hot Jazz. Before that, them boys from South Florida were riding a 4-game winning streak and starting to look like the Eastern Conference Champions we remember from the bubble. Excluding the Lakers, the Heat have true mental toughness and I don’t think this spot intimidates them one bit. They may actually love it. The Warriors will struggle against Bam Adebayo’s ability to clean up at the rim and rebound, which I think could also mean a frustrated Draymond Green. Are there any wagers on the odds of Draymond getting another technical? I think it’s more than possible. The Heat also like to slow down the pace and methodically control games. The Warriors feed off of Steph Curry’s elite shooting and rhythm, but Steph may not get as many chances tonight against Jimmy Butler. The absence of Looney and Wiseman won’t help, either. Take the Heat at a discounted price.

A very solid start to our free NBA betting picks as I went 2-0 last night! I don’t know if I’ve ever had an undefeated week but, who’s to say it can’t happen? I don’t love today’s NBA card so pardon my conservative approach for Tuesday. Here are my picks:

Lean- Celtics -2.5 (-110): This game sets up really well for Boston. Denver is sitting out a ton of players, including Paul Millsap, while the Celtics are in bad need of a redemptive win. The Celtics are 6-4 at home, they’ve lost 4 out of their last 5, they’re considerably healthier than Denver tonight, and while they’ll still have to contend with Nikola Jokic, who’s playing at an MVP level right now, the Nuggets could easily blow this game off after a huge win against LAL. With the way Boston’s been playing they’re tough to bet on, but the spot doesn’t get much better.

Lakers/T-Wolves over 223 (-110), 1.5 units: This total feels too low. The Lakers limp a little heading into Tuesday night after a humbling loss against Denver Sunday. We saw that coming. Unfortunately Anthony Davis will be out a few weeks, so the Lakers bigs will have to contend with Karl-Anthony Towns, who may be finding his groove after a long layoff from injury. Minnesota finally snapped their losing streak on Sunday, giving them some confidence heading into Tuesday night’s matchup. The Timberwolves haven’t been very effective offensively this year but they have looked a lot better since Towns returned, averaging over 116 ppg in their last 5 games. Lebron James will look to expose Minnesota’s poor defense, a unit that ranks in the bottom third of the league in Hollinger’s efficiency rating (ESPN), by pushing fast break points with his quarterback-like passing. He’ll need to do that to fill the offensive-gap that Davis leaves behind. That should pump up the pace of the game and force Minnesota to play catchup. Since the T-Wolves offense has been more effective lately, I see that resulting in an easy over.

Blazers -5 (-110), 2 units: Well I figured the Blazers were due for some positive regression but I didn’t think they would look this good. Damien Lillard is playing like a mad-man lately and what do you know– Portland can even play a little defense when they feel like it. The Blazers aren’t a true contender when it gets to the postseason but they can routinely win and obliterate bad opponents. The Thunder are riding lightning (love me a good thunderstorm, another thing I miss during the dead of winter) into this contest and may still be high off that win again Milwaukee on Sunday. Trust me, though, that was an aberration. The Thunder shot 47% from the field and 42% from 3 point land in that game, a real feat without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Shai leads his team this year in assists and points but he’ll will be out again on Tuesday. That’s bad news for OKC, especially considering their next best scorer is Al Horford. The Thunder won’t have the juice to keep up with the scorching hot Blazers offense. Ride “Dame Time” and take Portland to cover.

This is a slightly abbreviated edition of my NBA Picks and Predictions since I have quite a few commitments today with the misses, so I’m cutting down on my verbiage to save some time. I went 1-2 yesterday on NBA bets. I was pretty blown away by the Jazz, again. That was an ideal situational spot for a let-down game and boy did they prove me wrong. I guess it’s just unwise to bet against them right now. Overall we’re 13-8 this week. Let’s finish strong!

Celtics -6.5 (-110), 1 unit: The Celtics are starting to get healthier. They’ll miss Marcus Smart and Romeo Langford but they’re getting back forward Semi Ojeleye and center Robert Williams for this contest. Boston is up and down but this is a good spot after that bad showing against the Pistons. The Wizards won’t be able to stop the Brown/Tatum combo and the Celtics feisty defense should prevent the Wizards from keeping up.

Pelicans -4 (-115), 2 units: New Orleans has had their struggles recently on defense, but this should serve as a nice get-right game as the Pistons don’t offer much firepower. Zion is playing world-class basketball right now and the Pistons get lucky facing opponents in bad spots. That’s not happening Sunday. Take the Pelicans with confidence.

Blazers/Mavericks over 237 (-110), 1.5 units: This total is deserving of the big number. These are two surging teams who are only on a tear because of their offenses. Portland has increased their defensive efforts somewhat, but it won’t be enough on Sunday. Doncic and Porzingis are in a groove in the middle of a long home-stand. I can’t see every quarter not easily exceeding 60 points, so it’s the over for me. I lean to the Mavs side, too (-4.5 or better), which could make for a decent parlay.

Lean- Cavaliers +10 (-110): Watch the news on this game before tip-off. This could be a rest spot for Kawhi or other Clippers starters. Even if it’s not, this is a decent let-down spot for LAC, which I can see the Clippers still winning but Cleveland’s looking for a little redemption after that Friday night blowout. A cover is very possible.

Nuggets wins (+105), 1.5 units: I think the Lakers win it all again this year. It’s hard to conceive LAL getting knocked out by anyone in the postseason, but this is the regular season and the Lakers are on a tireless run of unbelievable OT wins and comeback victories. LAL’s last 5 games go like this: they beat Denver at home, won 3 straight OT games, and then came back from a double-digit deficit against Memphis 2 nights ago to beat the Grizzlies by margin. And they did all of that in 8 days. I’m out of breath just typing it. This is a great revenge spot for the Nuggets, so I can see the Lakers getting caught and playing behind early in this one again. As great as Lebron and his team is, I don’t think they can catch up if Denver takes a big lead, not with the way Jokic and the Nuggets are playing right now. Next to the Jazz, the Nuggets are the biggest threat to LAL’s crown and I think they make a statement Sunday.